David Thrale

Experience

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  Safeway

  Jan 1981 - Nov 1983

  Trainee Manager
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  Brent Council

  Nov 1983 - Jan 1998

  • Operations Manager

    Jan 1992 - Jan 1998

  • Senior Environmental Health Officer

    Jan 1989 - Jan 1992

  • Environmental Health Officer

    Jan 1987 - Jan 1989

  • Pupil Environmental Health Officer

    Nov 1983 - Jan 1987
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  Brent Council

  Apr 1998 - Feb 2016

  Lead responsibility for safety, coordinating involvement from the blue light services, transport providers, event owners, The Football Association, The Football League, all major music promoters.During this period, I successfully strengthened partnership and joint working on the wider entertainment site around the stadium. I oversaw the 2015 Rugby World Cup Finals, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit in 2015, several Cup and Play-off Finals, concerts and initial preparations for hosting the 2020 European Championship Final and Semi-Finals. Show less I led this service from inception in 2014, bringing the majority of the council's enforcement functions under my leadership. 77 staff on two sites with £3m turnover. Operated as delegated duty-holder for most legislation enforced by Brent and as principal advisor on functions, legislation, services, policies and strategies. key achievements:• 7% reduction in smoking prevalence within the local population from 22% to 15% in 2015.• Led on policy reviews for licensing, gambling, contaminated land, air quality.• Early adopter of The Local Government Declaration on Tobacco Control.• Led initiative to extend shared mortuary service to another council and delivered savings.• More income recovered from proceeds of crime than for any other UK council.• Commercialised pest control into a profit making service.• Eliminated inherited food inspections backlog.• Led 2016 review of H&S compliance and redesign of controls and managerial oversight.• Installed fully automated licensing online application system.• Received clean bill of health from 2015 Human Tissue Authority audit.• Carried out 27 successful prosecutions against illicit tobacco retailers and unlawful shisha bars. Show less I led this service from inception in 2011, joining community-based aspects of environmental health with parking, street lighting and street trees. 70 employees and 120 contracted staff and a turnover of circa £19 million.Key achievements:✔ Board Member of Future Customer Service Board delivering significant savings in 2011-2013.✔ Re tendered parking enforcement and back-office operation to one contractor for 3 boroughs. ✔ Won 2014 British Parking Association award for partnership. ✔ Tripled use of CCTV infrastructure for parking and moving traffic enforcement. ✔ Increased net parking revenues through better use and maintenance of infrastructure.✔ Delivered additional revenue by increasing PCN recovery rates by 7%.✔ Improved complaint response target and reduced customer representation reply time.✔ Implemented UK's first automated eligibility checking system.✔ Increased use of digital parking 7-fold, replacing payment by coin.✔ Proposed LED street lighting to deliver cost savings and reduce CO2 emissions.✔ Led implementation of Olympic Route Network for host London 2012 borough.✔ Board Member of Health Strategy Group that developed first Joint Strategic Needs Assessment. Show less I led residential and commercial divisions and 60 staff across two sites with accountability for £2m turnover, service structure, KPI’s and performance. Key achievements:✔ Redesigned Noise Service to operate 7 days a week at no additional cost.✔ Delivered 21 day reduction in noise case end-to-end times.✔ “No key areas for improvement” - Food Standards Agency 2003 audit report.✔ Delivered 7% reduction in staff absence.✔ Established alley-gating service to protect 1,000 properties in 3 years.✔ MJ 2008 Public Protection finalist - BARK.✔ Won RSPCA Innovators Award.✔ Founding Trustee and Director of Alehm trading arm.✔ Chair of Corporate ICT Group. Top 20 SOCITM UK LA website all 3 years. Show less

  • Chair - Wembley National Stadium Safety Advisory Group

    Jul 2014 - Feb 2016

  • Head of Service - Regulatory Services

    Apr 2014 - Feb 2016

  • Head of Service - Safer Streets

    Jul 2011 - Mar 2014

  • Director of Environmental Health

    Sept 2003 - Jun 2011

  • Deputy Head of Service – Environmental Health

    Feb 2002 - Sept 2003

  • Service Development Manager

    Apr 1998 - Feb 2002
• 

  Broadarrow Management Limited

  Apr 2016 - now

  Director

  Provider of interim management and consultancy. A tenacious driver of performance, change, commercialisation, digital transformation, restructuring, process improvement, teamwork, partnership working, and shared services. I make services faster, cheaper, better.Areas of technical expertise include Environmental Health, Trading Standards, Regulatory, Licensing, Health & Safety, Highways Enforcement, Community Safety, s92 council Policing; CCTV, Domestic Violence, Emergency Planning, Mortuary Service, Event Safety, Parking Services, Arboricultural Service and Street Lighting. Show less

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  ALEHM

  Jul 2016 - Oct 2016

  Project Lead - Commercialisation and digital transformation

  Project to enhance organisation’s commercialisation approach using digital channels. Wrote commercially-focussed focused content and for new website; integrated new social media, digital marketing and event administration software into a new website. Supported client in the migration of old website and go-live to a new website.OUTCOME: better communication with existing members, engagement with new members and prospective customers. Automation of event promotion, administration and invoicing, resulting in lower administration costs for client. Show less

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  London Borough of Havering

  Feb 2017 - Jul 2017

  Interim Head of Public Protection - 60 staff in 6 teams. £2m turnover. Environmental health, trading standards and street scene enforcement, including 5 boroughs shared service: North East London Metrology Partnership.• Established new focus of performance and improvement by Management Team supplemented by a 6-month plan of action;• implemented performance measures and monitoring arrangements;• reinvigorated food inspection deployment leading to client's best annual outcome - inspections completed on time and the highest proportion of businesses in compliance;• over-spends eliminated• commenced retendering of outsourced services operating on expired contracts.• personally led the successful defence of appeal for 30,000 person music festival licence• initiated development of corporate Enforcement Policy;• future business challenges identified to inform the business plan for North East London Metrology Partnership;• procured mobile technology for field workers; and• service received 2017 CTSI Hero Award. Show less

  • Interim Projects Manager

    May 2017 - Jul 2017

  • Interim Head of Public Protection

    Feb 2017 - Apr 2017
• 

  London Borough of Hounslow

  Jun 2017 - Dec 2018

  Interim Head of Enforcement, Community Safety & Commercial Regulation

  Interim Head of Enforcement, Community Safety & Commercial Regulation. 90 staff, £4m turnover: environmental health, licensing, ASB, trading standards, community safety, CCTV, Police team and outsourced environmental enforcement. Reporting directly to the Chief Executive for around half of this assignment.• eliminated overspends;• delivered 10% savings through managerial restructuring;• extended ASB response service from weekday office hours to 7 days a week 07:00-23:00;• refocussed Community Safety Partnership Board & delivery sub-groups to deliver strategic priorities;• led post-Grenfell private high-rise fire safety programme;• relocated service to centralised refurbished regulatory HQ;• transformed pest control into a profit-making function;• led project to upgrade CCTV network and unify and rationalise monitoring staffing arrangements;• upgrade IT system specified, with focus on automation;• successful Food Safety Agency audit outcome;• successfully tackled contractor under-performance;• ended employment of 4 staff; 2 by dismissal and 2 by negotiation; and• recruited a permanent replacement and delivered successful handover. Show less

• 

  London Borough of Lambeth

  Aug 2019 - Oct 2020

  Conducted a service-wide baseline service review, including a baseline assessment and new service vision.Led a small team of project staff to implement an improvement program and numerous projects, including:• Budget overhaul• New suite of KPIs with real-time reporting and analysis using Power BI• Introduction of in-field tablets• Overhauled oversight of business continuity planning council-wide with revised corporate accountability arrangements• Food inspection recovery• CCTV infrastructure renewal• New automation for all license processes and service requests;• overhauled processes to dramatically accelerate statutory HMO licensing;• new empty property approach;•virtual AI house condition survey;• public consultation for Additional HMO licensing scheme;•relocation of service from Civic Centre to 24/7 operational regulatory hub collocated with Police.At peak of COVID lockdown, I temporarily backfilled the vacant Head of Regulation role to provide needed leadership for priority public health services during the national emergency - and this temporarily meant deprioritising improvement & modernisation. Show less 100 staff & contractors, £4m turnover, including: • Environmental health • Licensing • Private housing • ASB (Anti-Social Behavior) • Trading standards • Markets & street trading • Emergency planning & business continuity • Data intelligence • CCTVAchievements: • Delivered absorption of Private Housing, Emergency Planning & Business Continuity into service • In-house Police service • Launch of 7-day service at no cost • Resourcing of high-rise fire safety • Review of the Vulnerable Victim MARAC response • Elimination of agency staff • Appointment of permanent successorLeadership Highlights: • Highly commended in John Connell Award • Commenced regular weapon sweeps • Started partnership licensing patrols • Implemented Resilience Standards for London and created a Borough Resilience Board • Eliminated double-data entry for service requests • Published a Renter's Charter • Joined the Setting the Standards scheme • Renewed street drinking PSPO • Established in-house trainee EH qualification programme • Featured in 'At War with Noise Next Door' documentary. Show less

  • Interim Change Programme Manager

    Dec 2019 - Oct 2020

  • Interim Head of Public Protection, Assurance & Regulatory Services

    Aug 2019 - Nov 2019
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  Wokingham Borough Council

  Apr 2021 - Jan 2022

  Interim Public Protection Consultant

  Council's subject matter expert. Leading a project to bring regulatory services back in-house from shared service, to deliver a more localised, responsive service, with a particular focus on improving outcomes for residents suffering ASB.Led negotiations and development of:• exit plan• financial liabilities• design of new service and staffing structure• transfer & recruitment of staff including new Head of Service• transfer & update of IT back-office system• establishment of an extended 7-day service and operational base at no extra cost•development of automated customer reporting portal and case delivery to tablets to enable real-time reporting of ASB whilst call centre is closed• created budgets• created KPIs• created cross-party programme for policy review.The repatriated in-house teams and 7-day ASB service successfully commenced on 1 April 2022. Show less

• 

  Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council

  Dec 2021 - Mar 2023

  Modernisation Programme Lead

  Transformed Welwyn Hatfield's struggling Public Health & Protection Service, advising the Chief Executive on modernisation, staffing, and structural change. In parallel, I mentored the then-permanent Head of Service and later advised the Chief Executive on the technical competencies of job applicants for the permanent post of Service Director of Environment.After the permanent Head of Service left, the leadership of the service was added temporarily to my existing role of transformation delivery. I led the service through an accelerated change program, delivering dramatic gains in efficiency and productivity by breaking the ineffective and problematic management culture. I eliminated all backlogs of food hygiene inspections and nuisance/ASB cases at no extra cost, & realigned EH teams to clarify roles and outcomes. I ended the unproductive 'everyone does everything' / 'no one is accountable for anything' culture. I restored the regulatory culture of making assessments on-site & engaging face-to-face with customers.My structural changes resolved repeated annual overspends by deleting licensing vacancies to match income received, which counter-intuitively resulted in better licensing outcomes, despite reduced staffing.I delivered a redesigned internal corporate H&S audit & governance arrangement, refreshed staff training & mentoring, and laid the foundations for a redesign of a multi-disciplinary ASB response service. I empowered front-line staff by removing unnecessary managerial controls, creating a Service Charter, refreshing the management of performance with new PIs, and implementing real-time PowerBi performance dashboards. I led the upgrade of the back-office IT system and the commissioning of IT enhancements that will deliver future automation and staffing efficiencies, all at no additional cost to the council.Upon departure, I received congratulations on achieving a great deal of strategic and operational improvement and being a 'breath of fresh air'. Show less

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  Cherwell District Council

  Dec 2023 - Mar 2024

  Transformation Consultant

  Undertook a full review of the regulatory service. Identified a comprehensive forward-looking transformation programme. Produced a full written 'as-is' and 'to-be' report that will when delivered, result in a significant reduction in annual revenue costs, enhanced service provision and improved managerial and operational professional standards. Outcome: faster, better and cheaper services.

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  Dacorum Borough Council

  Apr 2024 - Apr 2024

  Regulatory Consultant

  A very short assignment to provide an analytical, advisory report with recommendations for the better management of a problematic regulatory matter.